Vic: Crime commission just one option: police
MELBOURNE, Aug 13 AAP - A crime commission was among options being mooted to investigate18 unsolved gangland murders, Victoria Police confirmed today.
It was reported today (Eds: The Age) the police force plans to introduce a crime commissionwhich would have the power to demand questions and punish refusals to answer, seize assetson suspicion of criminal connections and subpoena documents.
A police spokesman said a crime commission was one of a number of options being consideredby police to help investigate organised crime in Victoria.
"Victoria Police is very concerned about the number of unsolved murders with potentiallinks to the underworld," spokesman Bruce Tobin said in a prepared statement.
The move follows the brazen daylight slaying of underworld figure and known drug dealerJason Moran and associate Pasquale Barbaro.
The pair were shot dead by an unidentified gunman as they picked up Moran's childrenfrom a football clinic at a suburban park on June 21 this year.
The double execution was followed by last month's murder of Willy Thompson, a bit playerin the Melbourne drug trade, gunned down as he returned to his car outside a suburbanmartial arts club.
They are among a string of underworld murders, leading back to the January 1998 murderof Moran's former close friend and standover man Alphonse Gangitano who was shot in hisTemplestowe home after falling out with Moran.
Despite three concurrent Victoria Police investigations including Operation Purana,which was set up earlier this year to focus on the gangland slayings, the 18 deaths remainunsolved.
Mr Tobin denied recommendations had been put forward to the state government concerningsuch a crime commission.
A spokesman for Police Minister Andre Haermeyer said the government knew nothing aboutthe proposed crime commission.
"We are yet to receive a formal proposal from police on the matter," the spokesman said.
AAP clm/gfr/sco/de
KEYWORD: UNDERWORLD LEAD
Комментариев нет:
Отправить комментарий